Wings of Time
by vashluver1
Summary: How does one let go of the past when the past has yet to be found? A reincarnated Meryl seeks solace in her new life. Will Meryl ever be able to fall in love with Vash once again? VM
1. Her Death

**Disclaimer- I don't own Trigun or any of its characters.**

_Author's Note- Ok so this is kind of a sequel to Loving Life. The reason I'm rewriting these chapters is because I realize that the first 9 chapters of Loving Life really suck. If you really want to read it… then do so. But I'll try to give you all the information you need to know in these rewritten chapters. If you have any questions, feel free to email me. Thank you for reading!_

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**Chapter 1: Her Death**

"Where are you going?" asked Meryl indicating Vash who was walking out of their hotel room.

"I'm just going to go grocery shopping because I kind of want to stay in this town for a while," he replied.

Meryl began pulling her white cloak on. "I'm coming, then."

"I don't think that's a good idea, Meryl." Vash gently took the cloak from her. "I need you to stay here and look after Knives." Vash had taken his brother home from a mental hospital where he had been cured.

Meryl sighed. "You're right, Vash."

The tall gunman kissed her on the forehead and walked out with a smile. Meryl froze up. "Wait! Vash was right?" She stood silently thinking of all the damage he could cause just going to the grocery store. An exploding dairy isle. Bounty hunters in the bakery. A money mishap at the cashier. "Wait a second!" Meryl exploded. "I'm not going to listen to him! He's Vash, for crying out loud! How could I be so stupid?" She walked out of her room, checked on Knives who was sleeping, and stepped out into the bright sunshine.

Meryl squinted her eyes against the harsh suns. "Why must we have _two _suns?" She headed to the bank where she thought Vash might be. She didn't know that he already had his money.

Stepping into the large air-conditioned building was the first mistake. Taking out a hidden derringer and pointing it at the bank robber was the second. And running in front of the child and its mother was the third.

A shot was heard around the city. Vash's keen ears picked it up quickly. A bad feeling settled in his stomach. Everything was going in slow motion, from the mad dash to the bank to the sight of Meryl's lifeless body on the floor. His eyes went wide at the body drowning in its own blood. "H- how? W- why?" Anger he never knew he had filled his eyes. "Who? Who d-? Who did this? Who?" He muttered breathlessly. Walking to her form was the second hardest thing he had done in all his years of living. Kneeling down and feeling her cold, dead skin was the first. Vash broke down in tears.

The bystanders surrounding him held pity in their eyes. The little girl Meryl took the bullet for slowly and guiltily walked up to the sobbing man. "It was my fault, mister. It was my entire fault. If I hadn't told my mommy to buy me a toy today, the nice lady never would have had to do that for me. She wouldn't be... be..." The little girl tried to hold back tears but her eyes wouldn't allow it.

Vash heard the snivel and lifted his head to see the little blonde girl with innocent watering sky blue eyes. "It's not your fault," he whispered. "I should have been there. I should have protected her. I should have found her before it was too late." He slowly stood up and walked over to the feds who were standing by. "Is the man that shot this woman in custody?" The men nodded. Vash walked back to Meryl, slowly scooped her up into his arms and carried her back to the hotel.

When they arrived, Vash acquired sympathetic stares from the other patrons of the hotel. He gingerly walked up the stairs and briefly checked on Knives who slept on, oblivious to Vash's melancholic presence. Back in their hotel room, Vash gently laid Meryl on the bed, the blood soaking through onto the bed sheets from the wound in her chest. Her violet eyes were open and dead staring into nothing. They were emotionless, spiritless, and listless. Her skin was bloodless, pallid, and ghostly. Her hair had lost its shine. Vash spent and hour just staring into her eyes before closing them tenderly and picking up the phone provided by the hotel services. He dialed Millie's family's house number. Millie's mother, Mura answered the phone in a cheery voice.

"Hey, Mura. This is Vash," he said in an inexpressive voice, so unlike him.

"Well, hello, Vash! You sound different. Is anything wrong?" she asked. Vash was silent for a minute. "Hello?" she asked.

"I'm still here, Mura. This ... I need to speak with Millie or Wolfwood, please."

"Of course, Vash. Here is Millie. Good day," she said softly and soothingly.

"Hey, Mr. Vash! What's up? We haven't spoken in a while. How's Meryl?" Millie asked innocently.

Vash choked. "She's dead." It was the first time he said it and the realization hit him like a ton of bricks.

"What?" Millie asked.

"Please don't make say it again," he pleaded.

"But how?" Tears filled her light blue, usually cheery eyes.

"She- she was shot in the chest about an hour ago in bank robbery," he whispered, drops of hot, salty water running down his cheeks.

"What's the matter, honey?" Wolfwood asked.

"I- it's Meryl," Millie wailed. "She- she's- dead!"

Wolfwood just stared, remembering the short little tyrant woman. He was always teasing her. A qualm twisted his stomach guiltily. "No," he mumbled. "No. It can't be. Can I talk to him?" asked Wolfwood.

"Y- yes. I need to tell everyone else anyway." She walked out of her room, biting her lip and clenching her fists trying to stop the tears falling from her pale face.

Wolfwood grabbed the phone and slammed it to his ear. "How?" was the only word that escaped from his lips.

"Bank robbery. She ran in front of a child and took the bullet to the chest."

"So you didn't kill the guy?" Wolfwood asked harshly.

"Killing him won't bring her back!" Vash snapped.

"I'm sorry, Vash. I'm so sorry," Wolfwood said softly. "We're coming there."

"No. You guys stay. I'm not at the house anyway. We traveled to July to visit my brother."

"You took her to see your brother?" Wolfwood asked unbelieving.

"He's all better now. The mental hospital really cured him. Besides, Meryl was different. We sort of... did it a couple nights ago and I changed her into a plant-like creature. She would have lived twenty to thirty years more if she hadn't..."

"You told each other your feelings?" Wolfwood asked uneasily. 'That must have been even harder,' he thought.

"I don't know what do to, Wolfwood! I don't want to bury her here! I don't want to bury her at all, but I have to."

"There are other ways, Vash…" Wolfwood said to the silence on the other line. "I'm coming to July, Vash. You shouldn't be alone right now. You need someone. I'll take Millie, too. She always cheers _me_ up."

"All right." Vash could see that there was no changing Wolfwood's mind.

"Just don't do the little 'ditching friends when they're trying to help you' act. I don't feel like looking for you for two years again."

Vash smiled. "I won't. I promise." They hung up. 'It's hard to be alone. I don't want to be alone,' Vash thought sadly and cried himself to sleep on the bed next to his dead lover.


	2. Rem's Choice

**Disclaimer- I don't own Trigun or any of its characters.**

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**Chapter 2: Rem's Choice**

When Vash woke up, his arms were around Meryl's thin waist like the anchor against his problems as she was in life. Vash sat up and stared at her bloody shirt. He got up and fumbled through Meryl's pink suitcase and pulled out her long white t-shirt, the one she slept in. He breathed in the fabric, trying to remember her scent.

After changing her, Vash cleaned her wound and bandaged it. He called for one of the hotel maids so she could change the sheets. From sleeping next to her, some of Meryl's blood seeped into Vash's clothes. He changed into a plain white shirt and tan pants. Vash spent the rest of the day crying lightly and brooding. 'I should have let her come with me. She wouldn't have been out to look for me if I had taken her along.'

Knives tried unsuccessfully to bring Vash out of his room. He sighed. 'I'll wait for Vash's friends to come help,' he thought.

While waiting for Wolfwood and Millie to arrive, Vash fell into a restless sleep, waking up every hour to a nightmare and each time forgetting Meryl was dead before seeing her body lying on the now clean sheets. Soon enough, Vash fell into a deep sleep.

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_(Vash's dream)_

"_Rem? Rem? What can I do? Meryl's dead. She left me alone," Vash told a black-haired figure in the distance. Red geranium petals blew around the two._

"_Oh, Vash. You will never be alone. She'll always be there with you. You have your other friends, too. You have me," Rem replied. _

"_I love you, Rem. You're like a mother to me, only that. Meryl was different. I want to see her again so much!" Tears fell from his eyes. _

"_Vash..." she whispered. _

"_What can I do, now, Rem?"_

"_I can help you," she said simply. "I can give her a choice."_

"_How will she choose?" Vash asked, truly curious._

"_I can bring her to life for just enough time for her to decide."_

"_What choice does she have?" Vash questioned, desperate for anything. _

"_She is between life and death. She isn't alive, but she has not yet reached heaven. I can bring her back to give her the choice of life or paradise."_

"_Let her live! Please! That's what she would choose! I know it! She loves me!"_

"_I know she does, Vash. Here she comes." Rem pointed to a tiny figure walking up the hill clad in all white. _

"_Vash? Is that really you?" Meryl ran to Vash and jumped into his arms. _

"_I thought I'd lost you forever!" Vash exclaimed._

"_So, Rem... What's the catch?" asked Meryl, raising an eyebrow._

"_You will be a plant, living outside of time. Never growing older... never changing. You'd have to watch your friends get old and die. This change might even change your physical appearance drastically. You'd have to be reincarnated as a child. Somebody would have to adopt you and you'd have to grow away from Vash, who can't adopt you. The good thing is, you'd be together forever unless one of your deaths occurred."_

_Meryl pondered it for a while. She would be with Vash forever but what about Millie? She would leave her behind. Same with Wolfwood. But she'd be able to see Millie's kids grow up. She'd be able to see her own kids grow up. _

_Rem spoke up. "If you need help deciding, this is how you'd be if you agreed to live." A girl materialized on the grass sitting cross-legged. The girl had dirty, tangled brown hair. She looked at them through two dark brown eyes, one covered by side-swept bangs. She looked to be about the age of sixteen. Her eyes held an emotion that none could decipher. It looked to be sadness, abandonment ... abuse... The girl disappeared. "Your future..." The girl appeared again but she was older, around the age of twenty-four. She had a true smile on her face. Her eyes were filled with joy, love of life, happiness, and fulfillment. She laughed at nothing... or maybe something. The figure disappeared. "So, Meryl? What do you say?" _

_It took a while for Meryl to choose. If she agreed to reincarnation, her teen years might be hard-filled. But it would pay off if when she grew up. If she just decided to go to heaven, she'd never see Vash again unless he was killed, which would also be sad. _

_Vash held his breath. He didn't know what Meryl was going to do. Deep thought was embedded into violet orbs. He couldn't figure out what she was thinking. _

_Out of the blue, Meryl said the first thing that popped into her head. She closed her eyes tightly and said, hoping it was the right decision, "I accept." _

_Vash let out his breath and asked Rem, "How will I find her?"_

"_Well, you know what she'll look like. Your job is to watch over her and make sure she finds you and remembers you. You have to keep a close watch on her but not too close. She'll grow up quite quickly and you have forever to find her. She will not be in this city. She'll be in the small suburb 10 isles west from July. Good luck to both of you." _

_-------------------------------------------------------------------------------_

With that, the background of the dream faded into Vash's hotel room. He looked to the side of him where Meryl laid, but _she wasn't there!_ He glanced around the room and saw Millie crying into Wolfwood's shoulder.

"I'm sorry, Vash. We tried to make her stay. We didn't know what happened. She just disappeared," Wolfwood said guiltily.

'The dream!' Vash thought happily. "I know where she is!" he said and proceeded in telling his friends the dream.

Wolfwood looked skeptical. "How do you know this is what happened?" he asked.

"Just trust me. We have nothing else to believe in," Vash replied, his deep aqua eyes boring unwaveringly into Wolfwood's navy ones, scanning them for a spark of hope.

"Vash is right, Nicholas. We should do anything in our power to find Meryl and bring her back!" Millie said softly.

The absence of the mister in his name startled Vash. Didn't she know that Meryl would leave her behind? What she even disturbed by that thought? Did it bother her in the least?

Suddenly, Knives walked in the room. Wolfwood narrowed his eyes. He still didn't trust Knives despite what Vash said. Knives noticed but didn't say anything. "So, what's taking so long? It's about time I help you, brother, to bring about something right! Just tell me what to do," he said.

Vash smiled. It was great to have his brother like this, even if it was just an act. It was amazing that he had to wait one hundred and thirty years for it but Vash wasn't complaining because in about one hour, he would see the love of his life again. Who cares if she wouldn't remember him? Who cares if she'd look a little different? "Let's go," he said.


	3. Uplifting Discoveries

**Chapter 3: Uplifting Discoveries**

It took a month to find the city Rem was talking about. There were 3 of them 10 isles west of where they were. When they finally reached the small suburb, they found only a small trickle of hope. Why would Rem send Meryl to such a dirty backwater town? The allies stank of rats and the garbage cans were overflowing with God knows what. Mold was growing inside the well and floating on the water. The buildings looked as if they'd be a second from collapsing. Some had already collapsed and no one bothered to fix them.

"I hope Rem didn't actually send Meryl to such a godforsaken place," said Vash.

"I understand completely. This place smells like a hog in heat," observed Wolfwood.

"That's probably how these people act. I can only imagine how they'll treat Meryl." Vash furrowed his eyebrows worriedly.

Wolfwood, Millie, Knives, and Vash found a small decent looking hotel to stay in for the months that followed. Every day, they'd split up to search orphanages and the allies just in case a small girl was hiding there. With every day that passed, Vash lost more hope. 'Maybe it _was _just a dream,' he thought sadly. After 2 more months, he lost hope completely. "I feel so stupid," he told Millie.

"You can't lose faith yet, Mr. Vash! She might just appear any day now. You said that by now, she'd look about the age of 3. We'll just look for any 3 year old looking girl and ask her a few questions."

"It's no use. I'm going whether you guys follow me or not. I'm not going to spend forever looking for her," he ran outside and into one of the foul allies and broke down crying.

"It's funny..." said Wolfwood coming up behind the stunned Millie. "He was the one who said to believe in this. Poor sap..." Millie ran into Wolfwood's arms.

"I miss Meryl, Nicholas!"

"So do I, Big Girl. So do I..." Wolfwood rubbed his wife's back soothingly and a tear fell from his eye.

* * *

"Hey, mister? Why are you crying?" a little girl asked Vash. 

"One of my friends... went away and I'm sad," he replied without lifting his head from his hands.

"What happened to your friend?" the girl asked innocently.

"She... she died," Vash whispered.

"I'm sorry, mister. I know how you feel, though. My mommy and daddy died when I was real little. I didn't know them. A mean man adopted me from the orphanage in town. He hurts me and calls me a... a monster."

Vash looked up to a toddler with muddy brown hair and dirt-caked cheeks. Her eyes were a murky brown. They were warm and innocent yet wise and understanding at the same time. She wore a ripped muddy brown dress that seemed too short like she grew a foot in a week. "How old are you?" Vash asked quietly.

She held up three fingers and said, "This much."

"Oh." Vash sighed. "Three years?"

The girl blushed. "No," she said. "I'm not supposed to tell anyone this but I'm really three months old." She looked down.

"What's your name?" he asked, slowly gaining hope.

"M- m-... I'm not supposed to tell my name to strangers. The mean man will hurt me again." She thought a while then stuck out her lip. "I don't care if he hits me! My name is Meryl."

Vash beamed and was just about to hug her and tell her how much he missed her and loved her until a thought came to him. 'She doesn't remember you, stupid! She doesn't even know your name!' "Hi, Meryl! My name is Vash! It's great to meet you!"

"You don't think I'm weird? You don't think I'm a monster? Why aren't you running away from me?" Meryl narrowed her eyes.

Vash smiled. 'Yeah. This is definitely Meryl,' he thought. "I don't think you're a monster," he said.

"Really?" Meryl asked him unbelieving. Vash nodded.

"There you are you little brat!" A drunken looking man staggered up to the girl and tightly grabbed her small hand. "Come on, stupid little girl!" He was too drunk to see Vash in the shadows but Meryl waved while being dragged away by her cruel guardian.

Vash nearly kicked that guy's butt and taking his beloved Meryl back home but stopped remembering that Meryl had to grow up away from him. He wasn't allowed to interfere with her life until she was old enough. He had to watch over her to find out when the time was right.

Vash ran as fast as he could to the hotel. He dashed up the stairs into Wolfwood and Millie's bedroom not caring what they were doing. Luckily, they were just drinking coffee by the window. They simultaneously turned around at Vash's sudden arrival. "I've found her!" was all he could say before he running out of the room, jumping up and down and singing happily. Wolfwood and Millie just looked at each other, shook their heads, and followed Vash out of the room.


	4. Blood and Water

**Chapter 4: Blood and Water**

A five-month-old girl skipped up to a tall, blonde, red clad man who was playing with a bunch of six year olds by the well in the center of town. The girl grabbed the man's hand and began to drag him to the nearby well. "What is it, Meryl?" the man asked.

"Look, Mr. Vash! It's a spider's web!" Meryl exclaimed.

Vash smiled. "Yeah," he said. Just then, a small butterfly flew into the sticky net. Meryl slowly moved her cupped hands closer to the struggling insect.

Before Vash could do anything, one of the bigger six year olds had a stick and was destroying the spider web and, in doing that, killing both the spider and the butterfly. The older boy smirked. "Get away from here, monster!"

Vash narrowed his eyes. Just as the boy began to aim the stick at Meryl, Vash swiftly took it from him. "Dangerous toys are fun, but you could get hurt!"

Meryl tilted her head. "Why does that sound so familiar?" she asked herself. "Thank you."

"No problem," Vash waved it off. He hated the fact that everyone abused the girl. It didn't help that her guardian never protected her and he beat the innocent child. That's what she was. Innocent...

As the weeks passed, Meryl grew. Soon she looked like she was seven years old but in reality, she was just seven months. She had a free spirit and acted like any other seven year old, but people still looked down upon her, thinking she was an alien or a mutant. Meryl did her best to try and ignore it but the insults and taunts continued. Vash was her only lifeline. She also had the few friends who pitied her but soon grew to hate her, as she got older. Meryl invited Vash to a tea party one day. Vash was hesitant about doing a girly thing until Meryl said there would be doughnuts. While sitting at a park table drinking tea and, in Vash's case, eating doughnuts, Meryl saw a group of girls laughing and pointing at her. Vash looked at Meryl's saddened face. "It's ok, Meryl. They're just jealous that you are getting more mature than them every day. They want to grow up as fast as you."

Meryl didn't even listen to what Vash said. She simply whispered, "Sometimes I just want to kill myself." Vash visibly cringed. He didn't want his sweet angel in so much pain. They just silently went back to their food and drink.

Over time, Meryl formed a barrier. No longer was she going to be discriminated against. She would be insulted, yes, but she wouldn't show how much it hurt her. One day, after enduring one year of misery, she walked down to the only area where she wasn't banned. The ally... On the way, a couple of her old friends started throwing water balloons at her. She stepped out of the way of each one, leaving puddles around her. When they ran out of balloons, she stared at one of the pieces of rubber left and thought. She thought really hard. All the anger welled up inside of her and triggered something... something extraordinary.

Vash, Millie, Wolfwood, and Knives were standing by, but only Knives and Vash saw and heard what was going inside Meryl's head. They saw the passion; the violence and rage slowly built up in her eyes. The irises and pupils disappeared leaving white, two blinding white orbs glared at the small piece of rubber lying in the sand. Meryl clenched her fists. The spectators gasped as the rubber formed back into a balloon. Meryl bent down to pick it up. She threw it with all of her might at one of the cruel former friends. But instead of water staining their clothes, a thick crimson liquid dripped down their faces. Blood... Tears welled up in Millie's eyes as the rest of the broken balloons followed suit and hurled themselves at the crowd of people watching by.

Meryl slowly walked up to the horrified outlaw. "You lied," she whispered. "You said I wasn't a monster." Meryl tightly closed her eyes and cried out an agonizing scream of anguish. She dashed out of the city's front gate and into the desert, disappearing on the horizon. The tears that Vash was holding behind his eyes now fell as he softly cried.

Knives stepped up to him. "Vash," he said. "Did you like how I was before?" he asked. Vash turned to look at him and shook his head. "Then I suggest you go and find her before she turns into me."

Wolfwood and Knives followed Vash as he walked to their hotel to get ready and follow Meryl again. Millie stayed behind to help clean up the mess of blood. They reconvened in the evening and left silently that night.

All night long, Vash drove in the direction he saw Meryl run. He didn't sleep despite the pleading of Millie to get some rest. It was only when Wolfwood said that Meryl probably wouldn't like him anymore with bags under his eyes that Vash finally laid down in the back seat next to Knives. Sleeping didn't help his frayed nerves at all. He kept having nightmares about Meryl dying again and Rem not being able to bring her back. After waking up in cold sweat once again, Vash settled with resting his eyes and not falling asleep. The group stopped in every city they saw and searched every ally, orphanage, church, hotel, house, bar, store in the five cities they stayed in. When they drove into the sixth town, the quartet walked into the local saloon for a rest.

"I'll take anything with alcohol in it," said Vash to the waitress asking for his order.

'Poor sap. And just when we thought everything was going to be ok.' "Just a beer," Wolfwood said.

"Tea would be nice, thank you." Millie sighed.

"Nothing for me." Knives needed his wits to contemplate Meryl's change. 'What could have triggered her depression?'

'Isn't it obvious?' Vash snapped as the waitress jotted down their orders and left. 'She was being abused! Insulted! Shunned from society!'

'Ok. Fine. But how did she gain control over her powers so quickly? She's not even supposed to have those powers.'

'I don't think she has control over them. She was just angry. The whole thing was an accident.'

'I agree with you about her not having control but I don't think it was an accident. She was angry. She wanted something to happen. Meryl was craving the power to punish those kids.'

'I don't think she meant to turn water into blood.'

'I don't either,' Knives said. The conversation ended.

Vash fingered the golden locket he had planned to return to Meryl before she ran away. It was the same one he had given her on Wolfwood's and Millie's wedding.

The depressed blonde jumped as a bell rang indicating someone opened the door. A brown haired blur came crashing into Vash's bar stool, which toppled over. Vash caught himself and the figure that caused the fall before they could hit the ground. The figure was a girl who looked to be the age of twelve. She looked up with surprised dark brown eyes. "Oh my, God! I am so sorry! Hah! Klutzy me! Later!" She got up in a rush and dashed into a door with a sign saying, 'Manager'.

There was a lot of apologizing and pleading heard from behind the nearby door. It opened and a large man walked out saying, "I'll give you one more chance, Meryl. But if you screw this up, you're fired."

"Thank you, sir! I promise I won't be late again. I won't disappoint you!" She briefly looked at Vash who's eyes were as wide as saucers. 'What is Vash doing here? Why did I have to run into him?'

She walked into a separate door next to the manager's room. A few minutes later, she exited wearing a waitress uniform and carrying a platter with some drinks on it. Meryl's face hardened when she saw the table she was about to serve. Taking a deep breath, she walked over to Vash's table. The ice in the glasses clinked as she set them on the hard surface.

"If you need anything else, don't hesitate to ask anyone but me." She grinned and turned away.

Vash grabbed her wrist. "Where do you think you're going?"

"Let go," she said icily.

"No," he countered.

"Now." She glared at him with such vehemence that it made him loosen his grip and let her go.

Vash looked hurt. Tears welled up in his eyes but before they could fall, a determined look came over his features. He briskly followed Meryl with his arms locked at his sides, his eyebrows furrowed. He closely trailed Meryl keeping to the shadows so she wasn't aware of his presence. She walked into a large hotel and looked behind her. Vash quickly jumped behind a fake plant that was inside the hotel's waiting room.

She walked up the stairs and up to room number 260, slipped the key in the lock, and stepped in. Vash tried the knob. 'Locked! Damn it!' He walked back downstairs and asked the bartender for a bobby pin. She pulled one out of her hair, gave it to him along with a strange look, and turned back to another customer. Vash walked back upstairs and fiddled with the bobby pin the lock. He heard a click and slowly turned the handle.


	5. Back Home

**Chapter 5: Back Home**

Vash opened the door to a huge surprise. There on the bed sat Meryl with her shirt off wearing only a bra examining just one of the many scars that adorned her body. She looked up and saw Vash standing above her. "Where did you get these?" he asked fingering a small scar on her shoulder.

"My foster dad… You know he beat me all the time," Meryl replied silently.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know any of these were this bad."

"Why did you follow me?"

"I have to protect you."

"From what? Or who?"

"Yourself! Did you even see what happened back there? Did you see what you did? Doesn't that scare you?" Vash asked angrily.

"Yes! Of course it scared me! That's why I ran away! I'm a monster! Why don't you see that? I won't rest until I kill them off. All of them, including you, will die."

"Meryl… I know how you feel. I'm not a human either. I'm just like you."

"I don't believe you," Meryl declared as she slipped her shirt back on.

"Meryl!" Vash exclaimed and took her hands in his. "Believe me! You're a plant! I'm a plant! Even Knives is a plant! Knives and I are around 140 years old! And you're just a year old but you look like you're twelve. You're going to stop growing at the end of next year and then you'll live forever. You chose to be this way instead of to die…" Vash stopped before he could reveal any more information.

"What the hell are you talking about?" Meryl looked at him strangely.

"Um… nothing," said Vash. He spotted a bag filled with food and some clothes. "Where are you headed? Or did you just get here?"

"Both, actually. I arrived here a couple days ago and didn't have time to unpack. I was going to leave tomorrow after seeing you and the others. I don't know where I'm going."

"You can come with us," Vash suggested. "We're going back home."

"Home? You expect me to go home? Hell no!"

"I didn't mean your home." Vash mentally kicked himself. 'Of course she doesn't remember…' "I meant my home. Where you can start off new!"

"Fine… As long as no one bothers me." Meryl's eyes turned black for a second.

"Thank you, Meryl." Vash started to hug her but she pushed him away.

"This doesn't mean we're friends. I still hate you." Vash looked down. "But chin up! I'm not dead! You're not dead! I haven't gone on a killing spree… yet…"

It took a month by sand steamer to get back home. Once there, Wolfwood and Millie left to catch another sand steamer back to Millie's parent's house to get their belongings. So Knives, Vash, and Meryl were left alone.

"This is your room, Meryl." Vash opened a door. "You can go to bed now. I'm sure you're tired."

Meryl gaped. "No way! It's three o' clock in the afternoon! I am so not going to bed!"

"I'll take her somewhere," Knives volunteered. "Where to you want to go?" he asked Meryl.

"Ooh! Shopping!"

"Fine," Knives agreed.

"Score!" Meryl jumped up with her fist in the air.

'Take care of her, Knives,' Vash sent Knives a mental message.

'You can trust me, Vash.'

'I can do this, too,' Meryl had a dreamy look on her face for a second. 'Woah…' "Ok! Let's go, Vash's brother."

"Knives. My name is Knives."

Meryl blinked. "What kind of name is that?" Vash coughed. "Shut up, Vash. Your name is pretty retarded, too." Knives smirked.

"Let's go, shortie," Knives walked out the door followed close behind by Meryl. "So where do you want to go first?" Knives asked.

"Hey look!" Meryl pointed at a large store. "It's Boswell! Let's go there." They opened the double doors and were refreshed by a waft of cold air. Meryl took a deep breath. "How much money are you willing to spend? 'Cause I wanna dye my hair! And I want a whole new wardrobe! And I need shoes! And…" she started listing a plethora of expensive things she wanted to get.

"You know… I think I'm going to hate teenage girls after this." Knives rubbed his temples.

Five hours later, Knives and Meryl walked out of Boswell carrying twenty something bags and Meryl adorning a huge smile. "Wasn't that joyful? Don't you just love my hair? Isn't it cute?"

Knives looked at Meryl's newly cut and dyed hair. "It's wonderful…" he said sarcastically. They walked to a bench and set the bags on the ground and sat down. "Yep. I was right. I do hate teenage girls."

Meryl ran a hand through her cropped black hair. "Very funny. This may seem weird… but I feel like I've had my hair like this before."

"That's because you have." Knives looked into Meryl's dark brown eyes. She looked confused. "I'm not going to explain it to you. Vash doesn't want me to until you're older. I think you should know right now but I'm not at liberty to make that choice."

"Look… I think I have a right to know what's going on in my life. Am I wrong in wanting that?" Meryl looked at the ground. They were both silent for a while. Knives didn't take his eyes off her.

About ten minutes of awkward silence, Knives said, "I think we better go. Vash will be worried about you."

Meryl looked at Knives, smirking. "You mean he won't be worried about you, too?"

Knives frowned. "I don't think Vash likes me that much."

"Why not? You guys are brothers right?"

"That's correct. We just have a colorful past. That's all."

"I didn't know you two swung that way." Meryl giggled. "I mean… it's not a bad thing to be attracted to your brother but I didn't see you as that kind of guy. Vash, I can believe. You don't seem like the gay type."

"What the hell are you talking about? I'm not gay with my twin brother!" Knives stood up angrily. A few shoppers stopped to look at him oddly.

"I didn't say you were." Meryl turned around and laughed silently. She stood up and picked up some of her shopping bags. Knives carried the rest. They started walking in the direction of their house.

Vash was waiting for them on the porch tapping his feet anxiously. He saw them come over and ran up to meet them. "Where have you guys been? I've been waiting for you for hours!"

"Well, we're here now, Vash. Could you make yourself useful and carry some of these bags?" Vash nodded and Knives handed him a few. Then he went inside.

Vash looked at closely for the first time during that conversation. "Your hair. You changed it back."

"Back?" Meryl questioned.

Vash shook his head, berating himself for slipping. "Oh um… nothing. I was kidding. Let's just go inside."

"Whatever." Meryl rudely shoved her shopping bags in Vash's arms and he followed her inside.


	6. An Evil Introduction

_Author's Note- I realize that in Loving Life, Wolfwood and Millie have two children, but I made the decision to take them out of this story. I hope it doesn't cause confusion. Thank you for reading._

**Chapter 6: An Evil Introduction**

Meryl sat at her new typewriter, gently setting her fingertips on the shiny new keys. A strand of her short black hair slipped down her cheek. She didn't bother pushing it away, captivated with her birthday gift. Her recently lilac eyes gazed at the silver letters. The gold knobs glittered in the scarce blue light of the moon.

A black-gloved hand rested on Meryl's shoulder. She turned back and up into the face of her companion, her lips curved up into a small smile. "Thank you, Vash. It's the most beautiful gift I've ever received." And the only gift she'd ever received… She pushed back her chair to stand and wrapped her arms around Vash's neck in a loving hug. He leaned forward so Meryl didn't have to stand on her tiptoes. Slipping his arms around her waist, he held her close for a moment.

"Meryl? Meryl!" A childlike voice crashed through the walls. "Meryl?" The door opened to reveal a tall woman with long brown hair and a friendly smile. "Good evening Vash and Meryl! I just came to tell you dinner's ready!"

Meryl pulled away from Vash reluctantly. "Thank you, Millie. We're just about finished here." She looked back at Vash. "Come on!" she prodded with a grin.

"I'll be right there. Just give me a moment…" said Vash.

Meryl nodded and left the tall man in the room. Vash turned to gaze out of the moonlit window. Meryl had grown so much in the past year. Her eyes were no longer a deep brown. Her childhood naivety had fled with the passage of time. Their relationship grew stronger, but sadly Vash thought, in a non-romantic way. Meryl looked up to him as a superior, as something like a dad or uncle. She looked 24 but she was still just a child in theory.

More than anything, Vash wanted her to be happy. Partly because she would go on a killing spree if she got too pissed, but mostly because he loved her with all his heart. No question about it. Millie and Wolfwood had returned to Vash, Knives, and Meryl quickly. They easily realized Vash's dilemma maybe even before Vash did. Not saying anything about it, life went on as it did.

* * *

"Happy Birthday, Meryl!" exclaimed Millie and Wolfwood. Even Knives, usually isolated from the group, was out of his corner and smiling. 

"Thank you, guys!" Meryl beamed. "Though it's strange… I'm only two years old!" She laughed.

"But so hot!" Wolfwood smirked, as he looked her up and down playfully.

Millie smiled and chided her husband with tug of his hair. Meryl blushed. "Stop, Wolfwood before I accuse you of pedophilia!" Wolfwood chuckled at this.

Vash appeared behind Meryl. "Cake!" His eyes were puppy dog big, staring into the chocolaty goodness that was Meryl's birthday cake. "Can't we just skip dinner and get to the sugar?"

Millie placed her hands on her hips. "No, Mr. Vash. We have to finish our dinner before we have dessert." She winked at Meryl

Vash pouted. "But why do you even put the cake on the table if we have to wait for it?" he whined.

"Oh shut up, Vash," said Meryl with a teasing hit to his chest. "Just eat the food. Millie cooked a big meal for us. You might as well enjoy it."

The family sat down together at the table in the center of the kitchen. Conversations grew and died and grew again throughout the delicious dinner of chicken, rice, and carrots.

"Oh Meryl!" Wolfwood piped up. "I almost forgot. Vash already gave you your gift from him but you have yet to open _our _gift to you." He pulled out a flat rectangular box wrapped in shiny purple wrapping paper with a green ribbon tied around it.

"Thank you Wolfwood, Millie." Meryl placed the package in her lap and began to unwrap it. The white box looked bare without the wrapping. She tied the ribbon around Mary's wrist and chucked the balled up wrapping paper at Vash. Meryl lifted the lid from the box. She pulled out her old traveling cloak along with the old outfit she used to wear.

"We thought it might go well with the boots you bought last week," said Millie, her blue eyes twinkling.

"Thank you guys so much! This is great. I can't wait to try it on!" Meryl grinned.

"Oh!" Millie clapped her hands together excitedly. "You could model for us after dinner!"

Vash gaped. "What? We have to wait longer for dessert?"

Everyone laughed. "Oh Vash. I can wear it after dessert for the sake of your sanity, ok?"

Vash gave her a lung-crushing hug. "You're so generous and understanding Meryl!"

Meryl gasped for breath. "You… could be… generous too if… you'd let me have… some air…" Vash released her.

"And last but certainly not least," Knives interrupted, "is my gift to you." The less sociable twin handed a dark red jewelry box to Meryl.

She accepted it with a kind smile in his direction. When she opened it however, the smile melted from her features. Her eyes clouded over in confused thought.

"Do you not like them?" Knives asked, disappointed.

Meryl did not answer him. In the jewelry box was a pair of gold dangling earrings. She sat in her chair, memories flitting through her mind, memories she did not remember obtaining. Memories of an older woman with shoulder length black hair and blue eyes. Meryl felt a maternal feeling emanating from this woman, who wore the very earrings Meryl held in her hands.

Vash waved his hand wildly in front of Meryl's face. She blinked and looked up. "Oh Knives! They're beautiful!" She showed no signs of her momentary mood, almost like a dip in the roller coaster. Vash stared at her a moment longer before returning to his food in deep thought.

* * *

"Are you sure?" 

"Absolutely. Did you not see her? Did you not feel her? She's here, in this shit ass town. I had the fortune of seeing her fury just last year. It was beautiful, turning water into blood; a show no one is likely to forget."

"What are we going to do with her?"

"I don't know yet. I'll need some time to sort things out back home. But until then, she must not leave your sight. Is that understood?" Yellow cat eyes lit up the darkness of the desert at night.

"Yes sir."

"Good. Finally, a minion who actually listens to me. What a relief. Well, I'm off. And remember, one mistake… and you're gone."


	7. Dreams and Premonitions

_Author's Note: This chapter takes place the day after Meryl's birthday and over the course of two days. I hope this clears up any unwanted confusion as you read the chapter. Thank you!_

**Chapter 7: Dreams and Premonitions **

She screamed. Meryl sat up in bed, soaked with sweat. She closed her eyes tightly attempting to forget. "That dream…" she muttered, running a hand through her damp hair.

The door opened quickly revealing the barely dressed Vash in a spout of deep breathing. "Are you ok, Meryl? I heard a scream," he asked regaining voice.

Meryl forced a smile. "Yeah, Vash. I'm fine." She sighed and looked at the clock, which read 12:38PM. "Damn! I'm late for work!" She shot out of bed in just her white sleep shirt, which she pulled off in a matter of moments.

Vash noticed that some of her minor scars had healed and the major ones were showing signs of fading. Meryl realized that he was still in her room and she was naked except for lacy black underwear. "Vash!" she squealed, immediately covering her chest. She slipped into her waitress uniform quickly, but couldn't quite pull the zipper up all the way. She zipped it up as far as she could and ran out the door almost forgetting her shoes.

Meryl dashed out of the front door, scurried down the porch steps, and darted through the busy streets until she reached the town's saloon. She stopped suddenly realizing what day it was.

The tall gunman sat on a rocking chair in front of the house door watching Meryl stomp back. "Long time no see, Meryl!" he called out teasingly.

"Oh shut up, Vash!" she practically growled. One sleeve was slipping off of her shoulder with her haste to get out of the house. Vash noticed that in her hurry to leave she had forgotten to wear a bra. Her uniform was practically falling off, showing the two perfect hills of her breasts.

The woman of his thoughts disappeared into the house, but not from his mind. The traces of her body lingered in his head. He groaned and cradled his forehead in his hands. "Why am I such a pervert?" he whined.

* * *

Meryl's form could be seen shaking, wrapped tightly in white sheets. She didn't bother putting her nightshirt back on. The lights were off and the blinds shut against the glare of the suns. 

That dream. It surrounded her, refusing hold of her mind. She cried, trying to forget. Trying. Crying. Her vision blurred, fading to that ghastly scene…

_Children's bloody tears. Red clouds raining death. Corpses strewn about the blood-soaked dirt. And a long figure, with glowing yellow eyes._

She gasped for air and wiped at her sweat-beaded brow thankful for the cool sheets and lack of outerwear. The clock read 1:27AM. Her eyebrows furrowed. How was that possible? That would mean she slept practically a whole day away, miscounting the little mishap with Vash about being late for work. Yet she still felt so tired. After some more minutes of dosing off and waking up to every little night sound, she decided it was best for her to get up.

"You couldn't sleep, either, Meryl?"

The short woman had already stepped out of her room and into the cooled hallway after replacing her thin nightwear. She turned to her right and saw Millie protruding from another doorway. "No… I was just going into the kitchen to make some coffee for myself. Would you like to join me?"

"That would be wonderful, Meryl. And we can talk about why we can't get to sleep." Millie smiled.

Meryl felt that she would rather not talk about her dream to anyone, but she walked with Millie into the kitchen nonetheless. Millie sat at the table waiting as Meryl silently put the coffee powder into a filter and the filter into the coffee maker. After pouring water in along with the powder and turning the machine on, she sat across from her old friend, or well… an old friend of just a year in Meryl's memory.

"So, Meryl, dear, what's been bothering you?" the blonde woman asked.

Violet eyes directed downward finding the table instantly very interesting. "Um… just… I just couldn't get to sleep…" on account of this recurring nightmare about dead people and blood and this tall man with yellow glowing eyes! But was it a man? Meryl could never figure it out. There was something written between the lines of this dream and every time Meryl thought she understood, the meaning just slipped from her mind's grasp.

"Oh…" Millie understood and accepted that Meryl wasn't yet ready to divulge her inner secrets quite yet. "Well, the reason I can't get to sleep is because I'm so worried about Nicholas and Mr. Knives!"

Meryl looked up. "Why? Are they sick or something?" she asked obliviously.

Millie tilted her head in question. "Um, no, Meryl. Nicholas and Mr. Knives left for December after your birthday party. Don't you remember?"

Meryl delved into her memory, trying to extract any remnant of that fact. She could only recall the fact that Knives and Wolfwood were nowhere to be seen when she woke up in the afternoon the other day. "That's strange," said Meryl. "I don't remember at all."

"That _is_ strange, Meryl. Maybe you were just tired, is all," Millie suggested.

"That would be a plausible explanation. What is their business in December?" Meryl asked.

Millie's features darkened, which only happened on very rare occasions if ever, but Meryl did not notice with only the moonlight to see by. "I-I don't know," Millie replied. "They mentioned something about someone, but I can't seem to bring to mind the what or the who!" she laughed uncomfortably.

The gurgling of the coffee maker ceased, signaling that the coffee was ready. Meryl made a move to get up, but Millie stopped her. "Don't worry. I've got it!" she said with her usual smile. If Meryl were as perceptive as Millie was, she would have sensed the tall girl's smile was a fake one. Upon turning her back, Millie frowned remembering her conversation with the men.

"_It wouldn't hurt to try," said Wolfwood._

"_I don't know about that," Knives muttered. "These things are hardly safe to play around with. And how do we know it will work?" _

"_We just have to have faith, Mr. Knives. If we really want our Meryl back, we need faith."_

_Vash had been silent up until this moment. "She doesn't care for me like I care for her. The way she looks at me…"_

"_She loves you Mr. Vash. I know she does," Millie reassured him._

"_Not in the way I want her to. Not in the way I _need _her to. Not in the way she _used _to love me…" Vash whispered. _

"_You see, Knives, we've got to try. For your brother's sake."_

_Knives looked at Wolfwood knowing that that excuse was hardly sufficient enough to convince him to travel all the way to December on a whim. "Alright," he sighed. "I'll go. I'm going for Vash, though. Not for his woman."_

_Wolfwood chuckled, knowing very well that Knives' leaving was just to get out of the house and _away_ from Vash, who would be staying. _

_Millie recalled the look on Vash's face… the sadness in his eyes… how he actually looked his age for the first time since Millie had known him. "It's settled then!" Millie clapped her hands excitedly. "Nicholas dear, you and Mr. Knives will go to December. Vash will stay here with Meryl and I."_

_Vash looked up. "Meryl must not know. This is of utmost importance. It won't work if she knows what's going on. Millie? You are the one she is closest to. Don't let her ask too many questions. I'll do the same. Wolfwood? Knives? Hurry."_

And here it was, the moment that Vash had warned her about. Millie didn't know what to say. She poured the coffee into two identical black mugs and brought them back to the table.

"Thank you," Meryl smiled, receiving the warm mug in her hands and taking a slow sip. "When will they be back?" she asked.

Millie blinked. "Um… I don't know. You should ask Mr. Vash. I think he knows more than I do." She giggled.

"Last question," Meryl grinned. Millie tensed. "Why do you always call Vash, 'Mr.'? It's so… formal."

Relieved, Millie returned the smile. "Old habits die hard, I suppose." They laughed. Millie took a drink of her coffee.

"How did you meet Vash, anyway?" Meryl inquired. The tall woman choked on the hot drink almost spitting it out. "Are you ok?"

Millie nodded and swallowed the scalding beverage. "You do ask a lot of questions, don't you?" She wasn't ready for this conversation. "Hey look at that little light outside!"

Meryl turned to where Millie had pointed and saw nothing at first. She looked back to see an empty seat and a steaming mug of coffee, but no Millie. Meryl sighed. "That woman is odd…" She stood up from her chair and brought her mug of coffee to a cushioned seat just below the window that Millie had pointed to as an evacuation tactic.

Her short black hair shined in the fading moonlight. Dawn was beginning to break over the horizon of the desert. Meryl sat staring absently out the window, taking occasional sips of her black coffee, enjoying the solitude. Her eyes caught sight of two yellow specks of light in the distance. She blinked once and found herself face to face with the crazy-eyed visage of a man with yellow eyes and a paler than death face. His stark black shaggy hair contrasted sharply against his skin. He grinned evilly. Meryl gasped loudly and fell backward off her seat with a loud thunk. The mug shattered on impact, splattering hot coffee on Meryl's chest and all over the wooden floor. Meryl sat heaving, clutching her heart with her eyes shut remembering… remembering…

"Meryl!" She opened her eyes. The window was empty, the soft light of sunrise streaming into the room. She stood on shaky legs and took a step; unfortunately on multiple ceramic shards. She hissed in pain and held her foot. Meryl could feel herself tilt off balance and fall to the ground. She closed her eyes awaiting collision. It didn't happen.

Vash caught her and lifted her away from the dangerous fragments. He sat her down on the kitchen chair she had been sitting at just hours before with Millie. He examined her bleeding foot. "This doesn't look to bad. I'm more worried about the big lump on your head." He chuckled. "Just wait here for me to get the first aid kit." Meryl nodded and Vash left for a moment. Meryl trained her gaze on the floor, avoiding the window at all costs.

He returned holding a small tan canvas bag. Kneeling in front of the frightened woman, he began using tweezers to gently remove the shards imbedded into her foot. Meryl winced, momentarily forgetting the man in the window.

After disinfecting her cuts and bandaging them, Vash moved up to her bruised head. "You had quite a fall, Meryl. You hit your head right on the floor. What scared you?"

Meryl looked into his aqua orbs. "What makes you think I was scared?" she whispered.

Vash smiled. "Well, it's a reflex for people to hold their hands out to prevent injury in a fall. You were too –I don't know– shocked to stop the fall. Your head collided with the ground instead of your hands." His eyes portrayed understanding but his mind was experiencing inner turmoil. Meryl was shaking. Meryl was bleeding. Meryl was gasping for breath. Something was seriously wrong. It didn't take a rocket scientist to figure it out.

"I-I saw something. I saw someone… in the window…" she murmured.

Vash looked out the only open window and saw nothing. "There's nothing there, Meryl."

Meryl frowned. "I _know_ that! It just came and went when I blinked."

"You're just tired. Maybe you were hallucinating," Vash suggested.

The short woman stood up angrily and grimaced from the pain in her foot. "I was…" she groaned and sat back down in a very unladylike fashion. "I was _not _hallucinating! I _know_ what I saw!" she countered.

Silence reigned between them. Vash blushed, noticing the position they were in. He was on his knees practically between Meryl's open legs, her nightshirt riding up, her bare thighs taunting him. She was unaware of the impropriety. Vash stood up and took a step backward.

Meryl observed his movements with a lack of interest. He began to talk to her while cleaning up the remains of the shattered mug. "You're right, Meryl. You weren't hallucinating. I don't think you should go to work tomorrow seeing as there's some random person watching you through the front window at dawn. Besides, you can barely walk. We'll just tell your boss that you're injured and can't make it." Vash swept the shards into a dustpan and pushed them into the garbage. "It's Sunday! You can relax and I'll cater to you all day. Does that sound like a plan?"

Meryl had to admit. She couldn't complain about being waited on. So she complied. "I'll just stay in my room and wait for you." She stood up carefully resting the majority of her weight on her unharmed foot.

Vash ignored the sexual innuendo of that sentence. "Do you need any help?" he asked, watching her limp slowly down the hall.

"No, I'm ok," she replied. She soon reached the door to her room. It was open. 'I was sure I closed this last night…' she mused. 'Oh well.' She entered the dark and empty room, closing the door behind her. She made her way to the bed by supporting herself on the walls.

Only after slipping comfortably under the covers did she relax. A handsome man was going to hang on her every word. She smiled dreamily and sighed. A frown settled on her lips as she felt a tingle down her spine. She brushed it off, but felt it again the next moment.

Meryl rolled over in bed to rid herself of the unnerving and incessant feeling. Her eyes were closed. She opened them to see the sharp features of a dreadfully familiar face. Before she could cry for help, the man with yellow eyes clamped a rancid cloth over her nose and mouth. The world went black.


	8. Retrieval

**Disclaimer: I don't**** own Trigun.**

**Author's Note: Ok so I finally decided about what I'm going to do with this story. I had forgotten my original intentions but I think my new idea is better anyway. It bugs me that both my new stores have to do with Meryl not remembering Vash. Oh well. That's really the only similarity between this story and The Other Tomorrow.**

**Kana- _Powerful_**

**Seiko- _Force, Truth_**

* * *

**Chapter 8: Retrieval**

Nicholas D. Wolfwood and Millions Knives were not in the best of moods. They had traveled to December looking for a man who called himself Seiko, Bringer of Truth. Knives was familiar with the name and its notoriety. Seiko wielded the power to manipulate memories and anyone who spoke to him could not lie. Ironically, he was known to be brutally deceitful and made dangerous deals no one could get out of. Only a truly wily individual could escape his traps by matching his wits against Seiko's, but it was extremely difficult to be _wily_ and _not _lie.

Vash knew all of this, but could not think of anyone else who could make Meryl remember her past life. It was a tricky mission, so he sent the two men he knew could handle the job.

Knives and Wolfwood arrived in December four days after Meryl's birthday. After traveling by bus and foot for half a week, the men were thoroughly exhausted. Wolfwood checked into a rather cheap hotel, while Knives immediately began listening in shady bars and saloons for any mention of Seiko. Wolfwood searched days, while Knives hunted nights. They reconvened each evening and morning and discussed the information they had uncovered.

It took almost two weeks before the men unearthed anything remotely useful. It seemed that Seiko kept a low profile by living underground an ile south of the city. His _lair_, so to speak was impossible to find. There were only a few powerful men who knew the exact location. Knives and Wolfwood sought them out.

Three days later, one of these men found Knives sitting in a dark corner of a saloon called The Bleeding Thomas. A young man of medium height and build walked out of the shadows and sat across from the plant. Knives instantly sensed that this man was a force to be reckoned with. His hair was silvery white and pulled back into a long ponytail that ended at the lower back. One eye was a sickly green and the other matched his snowy hair. The man's tan skin contrasted against his hair and Knives found that he couldn't look away.

"My name is Kana," he introduced himself. "I knew you'd come here at some time, Knives. Though, I assumed it would be sooner rather than later." Knives flinched at the sound of his name coming from Kana's raspy voice. Kana smirked for a split second before hardening his features into a face that meant business. "Seiko knows you've been looking for him. He could sense your presence coming three hundred iles away. He just doesn't know why. So speak," he ordered.

Knives did not realize that Kana had been preventing him from doing just that. If Knives had tried to use his voice, an immense pain would have overcome him. "My business is with your master. I am sure he would not be pleased if you learned of my reasons before he. I suggest you take me and my traveling companion to him, right away, where you will both know of my motivation for seeking your leader."

Angered that Knives had strategically pulled rank on him, but too fearful of Seiko to hurt the plant without permission, Kana acquiesced. Knives blinked and found himself in his and Wolfwood's hotel room with Kana waiting in the corner.

'Human!' he sent a loud mental alert to Wolfwood's unconscious mind. 'Wake up! I've found him.'

Wolfwood opened his eyes and sat up looking around the room, first at Vash's twin then at the suspicious looking man in the corner. 'Kana,' Wolfwood heard Knives speak the man's name in his mind. Kana smirked again and in a second Knives and Wolfwood were standing in a room with metal walls and a glass floor and ceiling, with Kana nowhere to be seen.

"How did you find him?" Wolfwood inquired of Knives.

"Well, in all honesty, the man found _me_. He said that Seiko knew we were coming. We're here to tell him _why_."

Wolfwood sighed as Millie's worried face flitted through his mind. "I have a bad feeling about this, Knives," he admitted.

Knives turned to look at the alleged priest. "You should. These men are more powerful than you and might even be more powerful than I, but you've come back to life once." Knives grinned. "I'm sure that could easily occur again."

Wolfwood rolled his eyes. "I never died, you moron." Knives chuckled and was unaware of the being that materialized behind him.

"Ah, you two capitvate me, which is lucky, because it is the reason you are still alive. Now tell me, what brings you to search for me so relentlessly?"

Seiko's shaggy black hair and white skin made him look like the living dead. His strange yellow eyes reminded Knives of Legato with the intense malice floating in their depths.

"We have come to make a deal with you," Knives answered truthfully, not that he had a choice in that matter. "My brother fell in love with a human two years ago, but she was killed. Instead of dying, though, she was brought back to life as what we are, a plant. Unfortunately, she does not remember anything of her past. My brother fears that she will not love him in this life and sent me to bring her memories back, with your help." Knives was careful not to say Vash's name. The infamous outlaw would only intrigue Seiko and bring about more questions that would lead him away from the subject of Meryl's mind.

"And what will you give me in turn for this woman's love?" Seiko asked.

"Nothing," Knives replied. "Because I did not ask for you to make her love him. I ask that you give her the memories she acquired in the life she had before this one."

Wolfwood watched silently. This arduous affair was sure to get them both killed, Vash, too, and probably Meryl. He hoped that Knives knew what he was doing.

Seiko sat in a chair that appeared behind him. "Well, that is a considerably difficult task. I'll need something of your brother's for me to do a proper job. What is this woman's full name?" the cat-eyed man asked.

Thinking it a relatively innocent question, Knives answered, "Meryl Stryfe."

Knives noticed the almost imperceptible glint of recognition in Seiko's eyes. He was silent but wary of Seiko's inevitable demand.

"I'll give you this woman's memories. I'll give you that and more," said Seiko wickedly.

"What do you need from my brother?" Knives asked suspiciously.

"Oh nothing at the moment. You'll find out when it's gone."

Knives and Wolfwood exchanged a glance. This couldn't be good. "I'm making you a deal, Seiko. We will give you 20 million double dollars in return for–"

"That won't be necessary, Knives. I have no need for something so common as money. I will take what I want and that is that. Am I understood?"

Knives nodded. 'I knew we shouldn't have gotten into this. Vash should have listened to me. We're powerless against this man. We may as well have sold our souls.'

"I've been very generous to both of you, letting you live, giving you what you desire. Now I demand that you leave. It will take some time for me to retrieve your _Meryl_'s past life for her. By the time you arrive home, she'll be good as new." Seiko laughed maliciously.

That was the last thing Wolfwood and Knives heard as they felt their conscious being ripped away and hurtled back into their hotel room, followed by their bodies. Awareness of what had just occurred hit the men like a sand steamer.

They hurriedly checked out of the hotel and caught the first bus home. Apprehension itched at the back of their brains, wondering what they would find, or wouldn't find once they got there.

* * *

Seiko rose from his chair and walked through a sliding metal door unnoticed by the two men who just left. He traversed down a long dark hallway and turned to the right. He continued a few more yarz and opened another sliding metal door on the left side of the wall. 

Stepping through the portal, he felt a refreshing cool breeze blow his obsidian locks away from his pale face. Standing in the greenest grass no human had ever seen, he turned away from the rolling green hills on the seemingly endless horizon and looked toward a tall oak tree with a low, spreading crown branching near the ground. Upon one of the higher branches, sat a short, white-clad woman with cropped black hair and violet eyes.

Seiko sneered. "Good morning, Meryl."

* * *

**Author's Note: Ok so... TWIST IN THE PLOT!!! I love twists. They make me happy when skies are gray. I hope you consider this a cliffhanger. What is Meryl doing with Seiko? Will she be different? Is Seiko that man that kidnapped her right from under Vash's nose? Will Seiko give Vash what he wants? What did Seiko take from him? Ok I admit that's kind of a 'duh' question. If you didn't know... the "short, white-clad woman with cropped black hair and violet eyes" is Meryl... I tried to be _really obvious_ about that. So anyway! Please review. Thank you!**


End file.
